Legal claims defining the scope of protection. Each claim is shown in both the original legal language and a plain English translation.
1. A method, comprising: monitoring activities performed by a home terminating telephone device; storing rules in memory of the home terminating telephone device that prohibit the activities of the home terminating telephone device; retrieving a rule from the memory that is associated with a user of the home terminating telephone device; determining a prohibited activity is attempted by the user of the home terminating telephone device; retrieving a notification address of a parent associated with the user; sending an instant message from the home terminating telephone device to the notification address to notify the parent of the prohibited activity and an identification of a name of the user that is attempting the prohibited activity; and prompting the parent at the notification address to authorize the prohibited activity.
A method for parental control on a home phone monitors phone activities, stores rules prohibiting specific activities, and retrieves rules associated with a user. When a user attempts a prohibited activity, the system retrieves the parent's notification address and sends an instant message to that address. The message informs the parent about the prohibited activity and identifies the user who attempted it. The parent is prompted to authorize or deny the activity via the notification.
2. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising determining an incoming call is received at the home terminating telephone device.
The parental control method described previously also detects incoming calls to the home phone. When an incoming call is received, the system proceeds to notify the parent.
3. The method according to claim 2 , further comprising sending the instant message to notify the notification address of the incoming call.
Building upon the method of monitoring for prohibited activities and detecting incoming calls, the system sends an instant message to the parent's notification address to inform them of the incoming call event.
4. The method according to claim 3 , further comprising including a calling number in the instant message.
In addition to notifying the parent of an incoming call, the instant message sent to the parent also includes the caller's phone number. The system identifies the calling number and includes this information in the message to the parent.
5. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising retrieving from the memory a log of activities of the home terminating telephone device.
The parental control method described previously further includes the ability to retrieve a log of all phone activities stored in the phone's memory. This log records details of calls and other actions performed on the device.
6. The method according to claim 5 , further comprising sending the log of activities to the notification address.
The parental control method, including activity monitoring and log retrieval, also sends the retrieved log of phone activities to the parent's notification address. This provides the parent with a comprehensive record of the phone's usage.
7. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising determining an outgoing call is sent from the home terminating telephone device.
In addition to monitoring for prohibited activities, the method also determines when an outgoing call is initiated from the home phone. The system tracks outgoing calls and their destination numbers.
8. The method according to claim 1 , further comprising including a called number in the instant message to the notification address.
When a user makes an outgoing call, the instant message notifying the parent includes the number that was dialed (called number). This allows the parent to see who the user is attempting to call.
9. A system, comprising: a processor; and memory storing instructions that when executed cause the processor to perform operations, the operations comprising: monitoring activities performed by a home terminating telephone device; storing rules that prohibit the activities of the device; retrieving a rule that is associated with a user of the home terminating telephone device; determining a prohibited activity is attempted by the user of the home terminating telephone device; retrieving a notification address of a parent associated with the user; sending an instant message from the home terminating telephone device to the notification address to notify the parent of the prohibited activity and an identification of a name of the user that is attempting the prohibited activity; and receiving authorization of the prohibited activity.
A parental control system includes a processor and memory with instructions to monitor a home phone's activities, store rules prohibiting activities, retrieve rules for a specific user, and detect prohibited activity attempts. Upon detecting a prohibited activity, the system retrieves the parent's contact information and sends an instant message notification, identifying the activity and user. The system also allows the parent to authorize or deny the activity.
10. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the operations further comprise determining an incoming call is received at the home terminating telephone device.
The parental control system also detects incoming calls to the monitored home phone, triggering further actions. The system monitors and identifies incoming calls.
11. The system according to claim 10 , wherein the operations further comprise sending the instant message to notify the notification address of the incoming call.
Building upon the system's capability to monitor prohibited activities and detect incoming calls, the system sends an instant message notification to the parent's registered contact information to inform them of an incoming call.
12. The system according to claim 11 , wherein the operations further comprise including a calling number in the instant message.
In addition to notifying the parent about an incoming call, the instant message sent to the parent includes the phone number of the person calling (calling number). This allows the parent to identify the incoming caller.
13. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the operations further comprise retrieving from the memory a log of activities of the home terminating telephone device.
The parental control system further includes the capability to retrieve a historical log of all activities performed on the monitored home phone. The system accesses stored activity logs in memory.
14. The system according to claim 13 , wherein the operations further comprise sending the log of activities to the notification address.
The parental control system, equipped to monitor activity, retrieve logs, and send notifications, also transmits the retrieved log of home phone activity to the parent's notification address.
15. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the operations further comprise determining an outgoing call is sent from the home terminating telephone device.
In addition to monitoring for prohibited activities, the system also detects when an outgoing call is placed from the monitored home phone. This triggers further parental control actions.
16. The system according to claim 9 , wherein the operations further comprise including a called number in the instant message to the notification address.
When an outgoing call is made, the system sends an instant message to the parent including the phone number that the user is calling (called number). This provides parents information on the destination of the call.
17. A memory storing instructions that when executed cause a processor to perform operations, the operations comprising: monitoring activities performed by a home terminating telephone device; storing rules that prohibit the activities of the home terminating telephone device; retrieving a rule that is associated with a user of the home terminating telephone device; determining a prohibited activity is attempted by the user of the home terminating telephone device; retrieving a notification address of a parent associated with the user; sending an instant message from the home terminating telephone device to the notification address to notify the parent of the prohibited activity and an identification of a name of the user that is attempting the prohibited activity; and receiving authorization of the prohibited activity.
A computer-readable memory stores instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the system to monitor activities performed by a home phone, store rules prohibiting specific activities, retrieve rules for a user, and detect attempts at prohibited activities. Upon detecting a prohibited action, the system retrieves the parent's contact information and sends an instant message notification including the prohibited activity and the user's identity. The system can also receive authorization for the prohibited activity.
18. The memory according to claim 17 , wherein the operations further comprise determining an incoming call is received at the home terminating telephone device.
The computer-readable memory also includes instructions to detect when an incoming call is received by the monitored home phone, triggering further actions within the parental control system.
19. The memory according to claim 18 , wherein the operations further comprise sending the instant message to notify the notification address of the incoming call.
When an incoming call is detected, the system sends an instant message to the parent's contact information, alerting them to the incoming call. This is enabled by the instructions stored in memory.
20. The memory according to claim 18 , wherein the operations further comprise including a calling number in the instant message.
In addition to notifying the parent of the incoming call, the instant message sent to the parent includes the caller's phone number (calling number). This calling number information is included within the instant message, managed through the memory instructions.
Unknown
November 11, 2014
Browse 5M+ US patents with plain-English claim translations and AI-generated analysis.